A recent investigation has revealed that over 95% of Missouri’s state-funded school voucher money is being directed towards religious institutions. This means that the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) program, initially designed to offer broader school choice, primarily supports tuition at private faith-based schools.
Intended for Choice, Not Exclusively Religious Education
The Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts program was established with the goal of providing families greater freedom to choose between public and private education. The system works by allowing individuals and businesses to donate to Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) in exchange for state tax credits. These SGOs then distribute the funds as scholarships to eligible students attending private schools.
However, the reality shows a different outcome: the vast majority of these funds are being utilized for religious schools, predominantly Catholic and Protestant institutions.
Revealing Statistics
Figures released by the Missouri State Treasurer’s Office confirm that more than 95% of ESA funds have been spent on tuition at faith-based schools. This highlights a significant trend: almost every scholarship dollar, indirectly supported by taxpayers, is contributing to educational institutions that incorporate religious teaching into their curriculum.
Proponents of the program assert that these figures simply demonstrate parents’ clear desire for a religious education when they are given the financial means to choose. Conversely, critics express concern that the program diverts public funds from secular public schools, thereby creating potential constitutional conflicts regarding the separation of church and state.
Advocates Champion Parental Choice
Those who support the ESA program, including various school-choice advocacy organizations, maintain that tax credits fundamentally differ from direct government spending. They argue that the overwhelming preference for religious schools merely reflects the genuine demand from families who are empowered to select an education that aligns with their personal and moral beliefs, rather than indicating any state endorsement of religious institutions. For them, the program provides vital affordable options.
Opponents Raise Church-State Separation Concerns
Critics, however, contend that the program blurs the traditional lines separating church and state funding. While structured as tax credits, the funds ultimately represent public revenue that the state chooses not to collect. Opponents caution that this system effectively redirects essential support from public schools, which often face underfunding, toward private religious institutions. They assert that, despite its neutral presentation, the state is indirectly subsidizing religious instruction.
A National Shift Fueled by Supreme Court Decisions
Missouri’s situation mirrors a broader national trend where various school choice programs across the United States are increasingly channeling taxpayer money into religious schools. This path was significantly cleared by two landmark Supreme Court decisions.
First, in Trinity Lutheran v. Comer (2017), a case originating in Missouri, the Court ruled that religious organizations could not be denied access to public benefit programs simply due to their religious nature. Following this, Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue (2020) further solidified this stance, prohibiting states from excluding religious schools from receiving funds that are available to other private schools.
These pivotal rulings have spurred states to expand their voucher and tax-credit initiatives, now confidently including faith-based institutions and diminishing the legal arguments against such inclusions.
Implications for Public Education
Initially framed as a neutral policy to broaden educational opportunities, the Empowerment Scholarship Accounts program has, in practice, become a state-backed pipeline for religious schooling. Missouri now stands alongside other states where the concept of “school choice” is inextricably tied to faith-based education.
These developments compel a critical examination of how states can simultaneously uphold religious freedom and ensure equitable public education, especially when virtually all voucher funds are directed towards religious instruction.